News From the Tunnel

I always think of this time of year as "going into the tunnel". The holiday fun and parties are over, as are the long holiday weekends. At work our deadlines are hard to meet because of the time off we and the post office have had. We have to work twice as hard as usual. I also have the additional load of sending out 22,000 1099s and taking care of all the problems that crop up after they are received. It gets light later in the morning and earlier in the afternoon, and there are no festivities to distract us from that dismal fact. We are lucky at our office to have President's Day and Good Friday off. Otherwise we'd have from New Year's to Memorial Day before we had a break in our routine.


This year I am breaking up part of the tunnel with a trip to San Antonio to visit with Jennifer and The Little Prince. I have requested a visit to The Alamo and a meal of puffy tacos. Otherwise my schedule while visiting will be conducted on Baby Time.

Miss Vivian came to spend the afternoon with me yesterday. She was in high spirits and we had a good time. She played with Rita and me, and drove the dogs crazy. She's turning into a real toddler now. She's very interesting in interacting with us and imitating everything she sees. Apparently I cook too slow, because she spent the (very) few minutes it took me to produce a box of mac 'n cheese cruising around
the kitchen yelling at the top of her lungs. If I picked her up she was able catch sight of the bananas on the counter, which just brought on more shouting. The pink boots are still the favored item of clothing, and ketchup is still the food favored above all others. She's getting handy with a spoon. Although filling the spoon is still challenging, getting it into her mouth is a consistent success.

I'm in project doldrums right now. Since I finished my scarf I have not felt like starting anything else. I only have a pair of eyelet rib socks on the needles which I am saving for travel knitting because they don't require much attention. I think today I may cast on for a pair of monkey socks for myself. I've got some J. Knits hand-dyed yarn in a semi solid that I think will make a beautiful pair to set the juices flowing again. I'll be starting another shawl soon, but the yarn I have in mind is hand dyed and really colorful, so I am hesitating over what pattern to use.

Next week will see the daily gym visits starting up again. The first week of every month is "crunch week" at work. It's not hard to keep my gym habit going through that week, but it's not the best week to add something new to my schedule. by March I should be looking forward to my gym time again, and heading out for some nice long rides.